The North Louisiana Economic Partnership (NLEP) won the award for its role in facilitating the establishment of the EATEL Business data center. The award is for Excellence in Economic Development and was given from the International Economic Development Council (IEDC). Excellence in Economic Development Awards are granted to the world’s best economic development programs.
VENYU’s data center Tier III data center won the Silver Award for Real Estate Development and Reuse. the Eatel Business Tier III Data Center received recognition for the renovation of the historic Selber Bros. Department Store in downtown Shreveport. The Parish of Caddo played a major role in the $20 million-dollar redevelopment project, which converted the blighted Selber Bros. property into the State’s only Tier III data center- the highest certification for any data center in Louisiana. The renovation project revitalized downtown Shreveport and generated 15 new direct jobs, 19 indirect jobs and retained 10 employees.
“We are thrilled to receive the IEDC Real Estate Redevelopment & Reuse Silver Award in recognition for our Tier III Data Center in Shreveport,” says Noah Boudreaux, EVP of Sales and Operations for VENYU. “We will continue to work with NLEP to ensure that technology-focused businesses can flourish in the area by providing essential business services and powerful technology.”
The IEDC Excellence in Economic Development Awards process is a thorough, non-biased and multi-layered process. Panels of judges reviewed 625 entries this year based on stringent criteria. The entries are segregated into three different population categories: between 25,000 and 200,000; between 200,000 and 500,000; and greater than 500,000.
The award was one of three won IEDC gave to NLEP, who was also recognized for a Human Capital Program and a Video/Multimedia program.
About the Tier III Data Center
VENYU’s Shreveport Data Center is located in the heart of downtown Shreveport, in the former historic Selber Brothers Department store. The building’s clothing racks have been replaced with over 200 IT server and switch racks fed by 91,000 ft. of power cabling–providing 5KW per rack for Data, Managed Services and Cloud services. The data center is the only tier rated facility in Louisiana and is the 46th Uptime Institute Tier III facility in the United States.
About North Louisiana Economic Partnership
North Louisiana Economic Partnership, an Accredited Economic Development Organization, provides professional economic development services to the 14 parish region of North Louisiana, including lead generation and prospect management. The organization also represents the interests of North Louisiana with a unified voice and as a single point of contact. It acts as a catalyst, a convener, and a connector in the region to ensure that North Louisiana’s economic development potential is realized. Its vision is for North Louisiana to be a thriving region-a destination for high quality talent, innovative companies, and global investment.
